Baseball



Nov., 25, 1924. l 517022 T. s. sHlBE BASEBALL Original Filed July l2, 1925 4 f S11/manto@ 4' 7730272 c25 LS'. .572 i ath-vana@ vPatented Nov. 25, 1924.

UNITED STATES THOMAS STEVENSON SHIBE, QF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

BASEBALL.

Substitute for application Serial No. 651,142, filed July 12, 1923.

This application led July 19, 1924.

Seriell No. 727,010.

To all coli-m t may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS S. SHIBE, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Philadelphia, in the county vof Philadelphia I and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Baseballs, of' which the following is a specilicat-ion.

My present invention relates to improvements in base balls of the type having a cork center surrounded by a layer of rubber., such as is shown, for example in Letters Patent of the United States, No. 932,911, dated August 31, 1909, and in the art of making the same.

This application has been filed as a substitute for application No. 651,142, filed July 12, 1923.

The invention aims to provide a ball of this character having a cork center provided with a homogeneous rubber shell in which the center is accurately centered or positioned.

The invention further aims to provide a ball having a cork center provided with a rubber enclosing shell of such construction that it can be vulcanized on the center without danger of burning or destroying the latter.

A further object is to avoid having any air trapped between the sheath and the cork center.

With these various objects in view, the invention includes the novel construction hereinafter described, and particularly dened by the appended claims.

In order that the invention may be better understood, reference is made to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a sectional view of a complete ball, and

Fig. 2 is a detail view partly in section and partly in elevation, showing the cork center and enclosing shell.

Fig. 3 'is a sectional view of a mold used in carrying out the process.

Referring by reference characters to this drawing, the numeral 1 designates a cork sphere designed to form the inner core or center of the ball, and 2 an enclosing sheath or shell of relatively irm and highly resilient rubber which is of homogeneous formation. bein vulvanized around and completely r enve oping the cork center.

In providing the cork center with a homogeneous vulcanized enclosing shell, I have found that unless venting means are provided, there is liability of air being trapped between the cork center and shell which makes the ball. erratic in bounding, this trapping of air being rendered more likely by reason of the cellular structure of the cork. Furthermore, the entrapped air is expanded during the vulcanizing action and tends to produce distortion, and it has furthermore been found difficult to provide a center with a homogeneous shell in which the cork accurately centered, or in other words, is surrounded by a layer or shell of rubber of uniform thickness. To avoid these various objections, I provide the shell with a lurality of vent passages. These are pre erably in the form of cylindrical openings or passages 3, through the wall of the shell from the inner surface to the outer periphery. They are preferably distributed evenly throughout the entire circumference of the shell, as shown, and may be left open as shown, in which case they constitute enclosed chambers or cells in the finished ball, as shown in Fig. 1, 0r they may be filled with a fibrous material which will permit the passage of air. In the formation of my improved center, the rubber shell is preferably formed in two hemispherical sections by the 8 use of molds such as shown for example, in Fig. 3, comprising male and female members 4 and 5, which when fitted together, provide an enclosed cavity 29L of hemispherical shape. The rubber compound is placed in this cavity and subjected to partial vulcanization, the cure being carried only to such a point as to enable the rubber compound to maintain its proper shape while being subsequently manipulated and treated. After two such shells are made they are placed together to form the complete sphere shown in Fig. 2, with the cork center enclosed therebetween, the whole then being placed in a ball vulcanizing mold of the customary form and subjected to heat to complete the cure, whereupon the edges of the two vhemispherical shells are vulcanized together to form a homogeneous shell. The vents in the wall of the shell may be formed by providing any suitable cores or filling members during vulcanization. The form of mold shown in Fig. 3 affords a very satisfactory means of supplying these vent openings or passages, though it will be readily understood that many other YEcrins or Waysk of accomplishing this are available. ln the mold shown in Fig. 3, one of the members, as Jor instance the 'female member 5, may be provided with a polar projection 5 which would 'forni one ci? the passages in tlie shell, enel the nienibe could be provided with e plurality olf circnniierentielly spaced selnicircular projections 4l@ which would forni spaced semi-Circuler recesses in tbe edge of the slcell7 :incl when two halfv sliells were brought tcgeuner with these recesses in elige ment, cylindrical cpenings or pessages'weulcl be tlie result. Other und intermediate pessages would be provided by the use o'i reinoveble core pins 5h.

llt de rerl, during final vulcanizetion in the ball inolcl tbe openings in tbe shell could be filled With core pins, This would not interfere with the venting of tbe air, es it could pass out around the pins, or they ceulcl berinefle tubular se tliut sir would pess through tlieni, or coulJL be er e porous nature. The eir Which had. passed. out through the vents would, of course, escape from tlie melf. by the usual parting line of the mold.

Having thus described my invention, What l claim is:

l. A bese bell comprising` a spherical center of cork and en homogeneous enveloping` layer or shell of vulcanized rubber lieve plurality ot' eir vents leerling from the inner to the outer surface.

Q. A bese bell having a spherical center ci? cork2 end enveloping layer of vulcan ir/.ecl7 rubber, szticlenveloping layer having u eslity of passages leerling Agroin the sur- .it the ccrl. to the outer periphery oit the rubber shell. i

2. is en article of lnzuiufacture, a core or center for use in making base balls, coinprising e spherical corkl center t@nel e homogene* shell or vulcanized rubber envelopingsuicl cork center, and having air vents or passages tberetlirougb.l ,Y A v ln testimony whereof, l ailix n'iy signature.

error/nis s'ruvnNsoN seres.' 

